II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1118 

To reauthorize the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 11, 2017 

Mr. RUBIO (for himself, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. MENENDEZ, and 

Mr. CRUZ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the North Korean Human Rights Act of 

2004, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘North Korean Human 

5 Rights Reauthorization Act of 2017’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) In 2014, the United Nations Commission of 

9 Inquiry (COI) on Human Rights in the Democratic 

10 People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) found that the 


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1 grave human rights violations still being perpetrated 

2 against the people of North Korea, due to policies 

3 established at the highest level of the state, amount 

4 to crimes against humanity. Crimes include forced 

5 starvation, sexual violence against women and chil6 dren, restrictions on freedom of movement, arbitrary 

7 detention, torture, executions, and enforced dis8 appearances, among other hardships. 

9 (2) The COI also noted that the Government of 

10 the People’s Republic of China is aiding and abet11 ting in crimes against humanity by forcibly repa12 triating North Korean refugees back to the DPRK. 

13 Upon repatriation, North Koreans are sent to prison 

14 camps, tortured, or even executed. The Government 

15 of the People’s Republic of China’s forcible repatri16 ation of North Korean refugees violates its obliga17 tion to uphold the principle of non-refoulement, 

18 under the United Nations Convention Relating to 

19 the Status of Refugees, done at Geneva July 28, 

20 1951 (as made applicable by the Protocol Relating 

21 to the Status of Refugees, done at New York Janu22 ary 31, 1967 (19 UST 6223)). 

23 (3) Estimates from the COI suggest that be24 tween 80,000 and 120,000 people are believed to be 

25 imprisoned in political prison camps in North Korea. 


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1 Another 70,000 are believed to be held at other de2 tention facilities. Prisoners in both situations are 

3 subject to harsh conditions, limited food, sexual 

4 abuse, and in most cases hard labor. 

5 (4) One of the most overlooked findings of the 

6 COI report was the persecution of religious minori7 ties, especially Christians. There is effectively no 

8 freedom of religion in North Korea, only worship of 

9 the Kim family. Christians are subjected to particu10 larly acute persecution. It has been reported that 

11 Christians in North Korea have been tortured, forc12 ibly detained, and even executed for possessing a 

13 Bible or professing Christianity. 

14 (5) North Korea profits from its human rights 

15 abuses. One report from the Asan Institute for Pol16 icy Studies suggests that there are nearly 50,000 

17 North Korean workers forced to labor overseas, 

18 sometimes without compensation, and for as much 

19 as 20 hours at a time. Workers that received com20 pensation were not to be paid more than $150 per 

21 month, which is between 10 to 20 percent of the 

22 value of the labor they performed. Based on this re23 port, the regime may profit as much as 

24 $360,000,000 annually from just 50,000 laborers. 


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1 (6) On July 6, 2016, the United States imposed 

2 sanctions on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and 

3 other senior North Korean officials for human rights 

4 violations as required by the North Korea Sanctions 

5 and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (Public Law 

6 114–122). This was the first time that the United 

7 States had designated North Korean entities for 

8 human rights abuses. 

9 (7) The North Korea Sanctions and Policy En10 hancement Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–122) re11 quires the President to impose mandatory penalties 

12 under United States law on any person that ‘‘know13 ingly engages in, is responsible for, or facilitates se14 rious human rights abuses by the Government of 

15 North Korea’’. 

16 (8) Although the United States Refugee Admis17 sions Program remains the largest in the world by 

18 far, the United States has resettled only 174 refu19 gees from North Korea between January 2008 and 

20 January 2017. Since the enactment of the North 

21 Korea Human Rights Reauthorization Act of 2008 

22 (Public Law 110–346), the United States has reset23 tled a total of 212 refugees from the DPRK. 

24 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

25 It is the sense of Congress that— 


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1 (1) the United States Government should con2 tinue to make it a priority to improve information 

3 access in North Korea by exploring the use of new 

4 and emerging technologies and expanding non5 governmental radio broadcasting to North Korea, in6 cluding news and information, to increase informa7 tion dissemination in the DPRK; 

8 (2) in an effort to more efficiently and actively 

9 participate in humanitarian burden-sharing, the 

10 Governments of the United States and the Republic 

11 of South Korea should commit to revisit and explore 

12 new opportunities for coordinating efforts to plan for 

13 a humanitarian and human rights disaster in ad14 vance of the collapse of the DPRK; 

15 (3) the United Nations has a significant role to 

16 play in promoting and improving human rights in 

17 North Korea and should press for access for the 

18 Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights 

19 in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as 

20 well as the United Nations High Commissioner for 

21 Human Rights; 

22 (4) because refugees among North Koreans 

23 fleeing into China face severe punishments upon 

24 their forcible return, the United States should urge 


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1 the Government of the People’s Republic of China 

2 to— 

3 (A) immediately halt its forcible repatri4 ation of North Koreans; 

5 (B) fulfill its obligations pursuant to the 

6 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to 

7 the Status of Refugees, the 1967 Protocol Re8 lating to the Status of Refugees, and the 1995 

9 Agreement on the Upgrading of the UNHCR 

10 Mission in the People’s Republic of China; 

11 (C) allow the United Nations High Com12 missioner for Refugees (UNHCR) unimpeded 

13 access to North Koreans inside China to deter14 mine whether they are refugees and whether 

15 they require assistance; 

16 (D) address the concerns of the United 

17 Nations Committee against Torture by incor18 porating the principle of non-refoulement into 

19 domestic legislation; and 

20 (E) recognize the legal status of North Ko21 rean women who marry or have children with 

22 Chinese citizens, and ensure that all such chil23 dren are granted resident status and access to 

24 education and other public services in accordVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:21 May 15, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1118.IS S1118

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1 ance with Chinese law and international stand2 ards; 

3 (5) the President should continue to designate 

4 all individuals found to have committed violations 

5 described in section 104(a) of the North Korea 

6 Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (22 

7 U.S.C. 2914(a)), regarding complicity in censorship 

8 and human right abuses; and 

9 (6) United States citizens should not travel to 

10 the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and the 

11 Department of State should launch a public aware12 ness campaign about the risks and dangers of such 

13 travel. 

14 SEC. 4. RADIO BROADCASTING TO NORTH KOREA. 

15 Section 103(a) of the North Korean Human Rights 

16 Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7813(a)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘that the United States should 

18 facilitate’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘that the 

19 United States should— 

20 ‘‘(1) facilitate’’; 

21 (2) in paragraph (1), as redesignated by para22 graph (1) of this section— 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘radio broadcasting’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘broadcasting, including news re25 broadcasting,’’; and 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘increase broadcasts’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘increase such broadcasts, including 

3 news rebroadcasts,’’; and 

4 (C) by striking ‘‘Voice of America.’’ and 

5 inserting the following: ‘‘Voice of America; 

6 and’’; and 

7 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

8 paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(2) expand funding for nongovernmental orga10 nization broadcasting efforts, prioritizing organiza11 tions that engage North Korean defectors in pro12 gramming and broadcast services.’’. 

13 SEC. 5. ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF INFORMA14 TION. 

15 Section 104(a) of the North Korean Human Rights 

16 Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7814(a)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘The President’’ and inserting 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President’’; 

20 (2) by inserting ‘‘, USB drives, micro SD cards, 

21 audio players, video players, cell phones, wi-fi, wire22 less internet, webpages, internet, wireless tele23 communications, and other electronic media that 

24 shares information’’ before the period at the end; 

25 and 


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1 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

2 paragraphs: 

3 ‘‘(2) DISTRIBUTION.—In accordance with the 

4 sense of Congress described in section 103, the 

5 President, acting through the Secretary of State, is 

6 authorized to distribute or provide grants to dis7 tribute information receiving devices, electronically 

8 readable devices, and other informational sources 

9 into North Korea, including devices and informa10 tional sources specified in paragraph (1). To carry 

11 out this paragraph, the President is authorized to 

12 issue regulations to facilitate the free-flow of infor13 mation into North Korea. 

14 ‘‘(3) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT GRANT

15 PROGRAM.—In accordance with the authorization de16 scribed in paragraphs (1) and (2) to increase the 

17 availability and distribution of sources of informa18 tion inside North Korea, the President, acting 

19 through the Secretary of State, is authorized to es20 tablish a grant program to make grants to eligible 

21 entities to develop or distribute (or both) new prod22 ucts or methods to allow North Koreans easier ac23 cess to outside information. Such program may in24 volve public-private partnerships. 


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1 ‘‘(4) CULTURE.—In accordance with the sense 

2 of Congress described in section 103, the Broad3 casting Board of Governors may broadcast Amer4 ican, Korean, Chinese, and other popular music, tel5 evision, movies, and popular cultural references as 

6 part of its programming. 

7 ‘‘(5) RIGHTS AND LAWS.—In accordance with 

8 the sense of Congress described in section 103, the 

9 Broadcasting Board of Governors shall broadcast to 

10 North Korea in the Korean language information on 

11 rights, laws, and freedoms afforded through the 

12 North Korean Constitution, the Universal Declara13 tion of Human Rights, the United Nations Commis14 sion of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic 

15 People’s Republic of Korea, and any other applicable 

16 treaties or international agreements to which North 

17 Korea is bound. 

18 ‘‘(6) FOCUS ON RELIGIOUS MINORITIES.—Ef19 forts to improve information access under this sub20 section should give priority to religious communities 

21 and should be coordinated with the Office of Inter22 national Religious Freedom to ensure maximum im23 pact in improving the rights of religious persons in 

24 North Korea. 


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1 ‘‘(7) BROADCASTING REPORT.—Not later 

2 than— 

3 ‘‘(A) 180 days after the date of the enact4 ment of this paragraph, the Secretary of State, 

5 in consultation with the Broadcasting Board of 

6 Governors, shall submit to the appropriate con7 gressional committees a report that sets forth a 

8 detailed plan for improving broadcasting con9 tent for the purpose of targeting new audiences 

10 and increasing listenership; and 

11 ‘‘(B) one year after the date of the enact12 ment of this paragraph and annually thereafter 

13 for each of the next five years, the Secretary of 

14 State, in consultation with the Broadcasting 

15 Board of Governors, shall submit to the appro16 priate congressional committees a report includ17 ing— 

18 ‘‘(i) a description of the effectiveness 

19 of actions taken pursuant to this section, 

20 including data reflecting audience and 

21 listenership, device distribution and usage, 

22 and technological development and ad23 vancement usage; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the amount of funds expended by 

2 the United States Government pursuant to 

3 section 403; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) other appropriate information 

5 necessary to fully inform Congress of ef6 forts related to this section.’’. 

7 SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ACTIONS TO PREPARE 

8 FOR GOVERNMENTAL COLLAPSE IN NORTH 

9 KOREA. 

10 Title III of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 

11 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7841 et seq.) is amended by adding at 

12 the end the following new section: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 306. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ACTIONS TO PREPARE 

14 FOR GOVERNMENTAL COLLAPSE IN NORTH 

15 KOREA. 

16 ‘‘It is the sense of Congress that— 

17 ‘‘(1) a collapse of the current Government, or 

18 a significant change in the leadership, of the Demo19 cratic People’s Republic of Korea could impact sta20 bility and security of the region, and critical United 

21 States interests, and would result in a significant 

22 flow of refugees to neighboring states; and 

23 ‘‘(2) as such, the United States Government 

24 should work with countries sharing a land or mari25 time border with the DPRK to develop long-term 


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1 whole-of-government plans to coordinate efforts re2 lated to humanitarian assistance and human rights 

3 promotion and to effectively assimilate North Ko4 rean defectors.’’. 

5 SEC. 7. REAUTHORIZATION PROVISIONS. 

6 (a) SUPPORT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY

7 PROGRAMS.—Section 102 of the North Korean Human 

8 Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7812(b)(1)) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the 

10 following: ‘‘The President is also authorized to pro11 vide grants to entities to undertake research on 

12 North Korea’s denial of human rights, including on 

13 the political and military chains of command respon14 sible for authorizing and implementing systemic 

15 human rights abuses, including at prison camps and 

16 detention facilities where political prisoners are 

17 held.’’; and 

18 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘2017’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘2022’’. 

20 (b) ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF INFORMA21 TION.—Subsections (b)(1) and (c) of section 104 of the 

22 North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 

23 7814) are amended by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘2022’’ each place it appears. 


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1 (c) SPECIAL ENVOY ON NORTH KOREAN HUMAN

2 RIGHTS ISSUES.—Section 107(d) of the North Korean 

3 Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7817(d)) is amend4 ed by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2022’’. 

5 (d) REPORT ON UNITED STATES HUMANITARIAN AS6 SISTANCE.—Section 201 of the North Korean Human 

7 Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7831 is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

9 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘2022’’; 

11 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub12 section (c); and 

13 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol14 lowing new subsection: 

15 ‘‘(b) NEEDS ASSESSMENT.—The report shall include 

16 a needs assessment to inform the distribution of humani17 tarian assistance inside North Korea.’’. 

18 (e) ASSISTANCE PROVIDED OUTSIDE OF NORTH

19 KOREA.—Section 203(c)(1) of the North Korean Human 

20 Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7833(c)(1)) is amended 

21 by striking ‘‘2013 through 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2018 

22 through 2022’’. 

23 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Section 305(a) of the North 

24 Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7845(a)) 


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1 is amended, in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by 

2 striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2022’’. 

Æ 


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